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Pilgrim Firs has plans for a Serenity Garden

Pilgrim Firs Work Action Camp is going to be building a pagoda to display a Timeless Cycle Prayer Wheel that was given to the camp in memory of Doug Mallett, a member of University Congregational UCC in Seattle and member of the PNC-UCC Stewardship Committee. It was given by his family—his wife Brenda and sons Marc and Ross.

Sculpted prayer wheel will be placed in pagoda in Serenity Garden.         Photo courtesy of Mark Boyd

Mark Boyd, managing director of Pilgrim Firs Camp and Conference Center shared the story behind the sculpted prayer wheel.

Axis of Hope Prayer Wheels was begun by Chris Moench, an artist in Bellingham, who was troubled by the loss of life and environmental destruction that resulted June 10, 1999, when a gas pipeline ruptured and caused a fire along a creek in a Bellingham city park. Two 10-year-old boys playing in the park and an 18-year-old man died in the fire.

Chris created the sculpture to help people reflect on the event and then began sculpting prayer wheels, including the one that will be placed in the pagoda in the new Serenity Garden next to the outdoor labyrinth.

“The Serenity Garden is designed as a quiet reflective space for folks to gather. Currently it holds two memory trees planted in recognition of two youth who grew up going to Pilgrim Firs, Sam Martinez and Lauren Bianco. Both left this world way too early,” Mark said.

“In the Buddhist tradition, each revolution of a prayer wheel counts as an uttered prayer,” he explained, quoting Chris.

“Considering the troubling state of our planet and humanity’s ongoing search for hope—the prayer wheel provides an axis that radiates optimism, healing, peace, wholeness, love, compassion and harmony among all things. It is an ‘Axis of Hope’ spinning counter to so many negative things,” he said.

“In the process of creating each vessel I write the words Peace, Love, Gratitude, Compassion on the inside,” Chris explained. “Aside from those four words, the vessels are empty until people fill them with their own written prayers, intentions, memories or other meaningful items.”

Mark then shared more about events at Pilgrim Firs.

In the summer, Kids Camp and U-and-Me Camp will be held the weekend of June 14 to 16.

“While most youth camps are at N-Sid-Sen, these camps are for families of small children who do not want them to go far,” Mark said. “Our hope is that they will build relationships and excitement so then will want to go together to camps at N-Sid Sen.

“That’s the result of the Midwinter Youth Camp at Pilgrim Firs this winter. Several youth are excited and now plan to go to summer camp at N-Sid-Sen,” he said.

Pilgrim Firs is keeping busy.

There was a Sufi group there in March for a week-long silent retreat. While that is not conducive to having multiple groups at the camp, Mark plans to have several groups share the space in the coming seasons.

A new group, the Puget Sound Folk Harp group has 35 harp players signed up to come in April to plan and have workshops. During the same, a Unitarian Universalist men’s group and University Congregational youth retreat will share the space.

“It’s more sustainable if we have more than 20 people in one group on the site.

May 10 to 12, three groups will use Pilgrim Firs, a drum workshop, a Fox Island UCC overnight, and Suquamish will come one day.

“They will eat meals at the same time but have different colored tablecloths and napkin dispensers with the groups’ names.

Later, United Churches of Olympia and St. Paul’s UCC, which have had a retreat weekend together, will share with another small church. They come in August and March.

March 25 to 27, 10 volunteers came for a weekend Work Action Camp.

“We changed the name, because not everyone needs construction skills to help. There is power washing, trail work and many other activities, including setting up the pagoda in the Serenity Garden,” Mark said.

During the April 12 to 15 Work Action Camp, staff will hold a yard sale of things that have accumulated but Pilgrim Firs no longer uses.

“Pilgrim Firs is doing well financially,” he said.

For two weeks in December when no one was there, they painted rooms in South Lodge and upgraded lighting. They will finish the painting next December.

For information, call 360-876-2031 or email mark@pilgrim-firs.org.

To learn about the Axis of Hope, contact Chris Moench at axisofhope.net

 

Pacific Northwest United Church of Christ Conference News © April 2024

 

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